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All About the Holidays: Summer and Winter Solstice

2 minutes

(male narrator)
The day with the shortest period
of daylight,
around December 22
in the United States,
is called the winter solstice.
At the winter solstice,
ancient people knew the days
would start to get longer,
and they celebrated
the return of light.
Today Christmas and Hanukkah
are celebrated
around the solstice too.
Why do the days seem to get
longer or shorter?
An imaginary axis runs through
the center of Earth.
Earth's spin axis is tilted,
and the intensity of sunlight
falling where we live
changes as Earth
orbits the sun.
On the Northern Hemisphere's
winter solstice,
we're tilted away
from the sun
and receive the least
direct sunlight.
The day with the longest
period of sunlight,
exactly six months later,
is called the summer solstice.
That's when
the Northern Hemisphere
receives the most
direct sunlight.
If you lived
in the Southern Hemisphere
it would be opposite.
Our summer solstice
is their winter solstice.
The days that fall exactly
in between the two solstices
are called the spring equinox
and the fall equinox
because, at those times, the day
is exactly equal to the night.
Check a calendar.
Are you closer to the winter
solstice or the summer solstice?

As the Earth revolves around the Sun, the daylight hours get longer and shorter depending on its orientation. Learn more about the celebrations surrounding the longest and shortest days of the year. Part of the “All About the Holidays” series.